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Could a Donald Trump presidency affect New Zealand’s housing market?

Our remote country is thankfully fairly insulated from any conflict, but our economy might not be.

Donald Trump is now the most powerful man in the world. The effects of this revelation will be felt throughout the globe, but most keenly in the United States where Trump has pledged to change and repeal countless laws during his first 100 days in office.

This is a time of change. Americans who don’t support Trump are voicing concern while supporters are expecting positive change – the nation is split in two. What could this mean for us here in New Zealand?

There’s evidence to suggest that this election could even affect the New Zealand property market. It’s difficult to know what will happen in the future, but we’ve had a closer look at the facts to see if a Trump presidency could really influence property prices in our little corner of the world.

The Trump effect

Donald Trump is the most powerful man in the world.

Americans are voicing their disenchantment with their new president in interesting ways – planning to emigrate overseas included. The Canadian Immigration website crashed on the day that Trump was elected, and Google Trends shows that searches of ‘New Zealand visa’ increased 16 fold the day after the election. New Zealand real estate websites have also reported massively increased traffic from America-based visitors.

Clearly Americans are interested in New Zealand real estate but is it enough to affect our market in a noticeable way? Without more concrete statistics it’s hard to know, but simple economic principles state that increased demand will place upwards pressure on prices. Debt.org states that the ultra wealthy in America are democrat-leaning, so, if people amongst that upper class immigrate that they could invest in property.

An influx of American property investors is a possibility in the near future, which could bring with it increased demand for New Zealand property.

The state of play in the States

There’s protests on the streets throughout America and it’s clear why some people want to leave.

As you may well know, Hillary Clinton secured over 300,000 more votes than Donald Trump, and yet Trump emerged victorious. He turned the electoral map on it’s head and won states that have voted democrat for decades in a surprising turn of events.

The result is a nation divided, with half in support of Trump and half vehemently opposing him. Hillary Clinton’s website even proudly claims that the five living American presidents (including the republicans) supported her and not Trump.

So what’s the net affect here? It’s too early to say how exactly a Trump presidency will affect the world and it’s economy but some early reactions have been drastic. The Mexican peso for example, fell to the lowest value it has seen since 1995 according to the Financial times. There are protests on the streets throughout America and it’s clear that some of the more left-leaning citizens want to leave.

But can they come to New Zealand?

New Zealand Immigration

The short answer is yes. There’s a number of criteria that immigrants to New Zealand must fit before being allowed a visa or residency. These include requirements around work, education, English fluency and character. Once an American immigrant fits these criteria, he or she is likely to be granted residency or a visa upon applying.

Additionally foreigners can purchase land and property in New Zealand after securing an IRD number, without a visa. If Trump causes the economic volatility that some predict, property in a thriving market such as New Zealand’s could start to become more attractive to foreign investors.